Temperatures hit 43C in Spain’s hottest spring heatwave in decades

Extreme heat is expected to run throughout rest of week

Seville has been hit by scorching temperatures in Spain’s heatwave (AFP via Getty Images)

Spain has been hit by its first major heatwave of the year, with temperatures reaching 43C in some parts of the country.

Extreme heat warnings are in place across the country, which is grappling with its earliest heatwave in more than four decades.

Temperatures have been topping 40C over the past few days, with scorching weather expected to last throughout the week.

On Tuesday, forecasters told areas in Seville, Andalusia, Cordova and Jaén to expect 43C weather.

Others - including Madrid and Barcelona - are also facing heat warnings throughout the day with temperatures in the late 30C and early 40C forecast.

The national weather agency has put the June heatwave down to a mass of hot air that has moved in from North Africa.

Aemet forecasters said the suffocating heat wave could last in most of Spain until Thursday or Friday - a few days before summer officially starts on 21 June.

People shelter from the heat as Seville was hit by extreme temperatures (AFP via Getty Images)

It comes after temperatures of more than 40C hit Spain over the the weekend.

People rode their bikes through fountains or stayed in the shadows as temperatures rose, while others took to swimming pools.

For some, it was work as normal. At Toto e Peppino, a famous Italian restaurant in Madrid, 19-year-old pizza maker Simone Roma was working at an oven.

“You work and you keep going because of passion and because this is what we like to do. It goes through my veins, this is my family,” he said.

Spain has been experiencing days of temperatures around 40C (AFP via Getty Images)

Madrid has been approaching 40C over the past few days, which is well above its average for early June.

Ciudad Real, which sits south of Madrid, hit 43C on the weekend, as did a province in Andalusia. Several areas of Seveille also surpassed 42C on Sunday, according to the Aemet weather agency.

Spain’s heatwave is expected to last until the end of the week (AFP via Getty Images)

The scorching weather ran through into Monday morning, with the hottest temperatures - in the upper end of 42C - recorded in the southern Cordova province.

“While extreme heat is not unknown in June, the fact is that heatwaves have become five times more frequent in the 21st century,” Ruben del Campo, a spokesperson for the Aemet weather service, said.

Scientists warn heatwaves are set to become even more intense and happen more often due to the climate crisis, which has already likely doubled the probability of them occurring.

People take refuge in shade in Madrid as the city grapples with scorching weather (AFP via Getty Images)

This heatwave in Spain follows a record-breaking one last August.

Holidaymakers heading for its Canary Islands have also been warned that they are likely to be hotter than usual this summer.

Additional reporting by Reuters